Some Long Branch residents were settling in for the night when a loud crash of crunching metal jolted the community.

Police were called to a horrific collision on June 19 at 10:19 p.m. on Lake Shore Blvd. W., near Forty Second Street, close to the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 101, as a BMW and motorcycle collided at high speed.

Traffic Services Unit officers said a 35-year-old motorcyclist was travelling eastbound on Lake Shore Blvd. W., at a ‘high rate of speed.’

“The driver of a BMW was travelling northbound on Forty Second Street to westbound Lake Shore Blvd. W.,” according to a police press release. “The motorcycle collided with the BMW in the eastbound lanes of Lake Shore Blvd. W. and the rider suffered fatal injuries.”

Police are asking local residents, businesses, and drivers, who may have security or dash camera footage of the area or incident, to contact investigators.
Officers shut a section of Lake Shore Blvd. for nearly four hours as investigators scoured the scene for evidence.

The force of the crash wrote off the motorcycle. The rider died at the scene despite emergency aid being provided. He is the city’s sixth traffic-related fatality this year, police said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-1900, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), online at www.222tips.com, online on our Facebook Leave a Tip page, or text TOR and your message to CRIMES (274637). Download the free Crime Stoppers Mobile App on iTunes or Google Play.

 

Etobicoke firefighters are mourning the death of a well-respected colleague who is being praised for his firehall finger-licking culinary skills.

Brian Malcolm Muir, who was dubbed ‘Big Bud,’ by his many colleagues, passed away peacefully on June 17 surrounded by his loving family at his Mississauga home. He was 75.

Muir served for 31 years as a firefighter for the Etobicoke Fire Department. He took part in fighting many big blazes over the years.

He was predeceased by his wife Emilia. Cherished father of Ian and  Cindy, Jason, Scott and Elaine. He loved his grandchildren: Ariel, Mickayla, Devin and Dylan. Brother of Hall, Sharon and Kevin.

Peter Zaremba, who worked alongside Muir, called ‘Big Bud’ a ‘firefighter’s firefighter.”

He was “a man larger than life with a smile and a spirit to match,” recalls Zaremba. “Brian was the firehall chef for all my years working with him. His meals were always top notch and were envied by other firehalls.”

He said his co-worker ‘will be missed. Godspeed my friend.”

Retired Etobicoke firefighter Paul Dodds says Brian was well known for his great meals.

“He was an amazing cook and one of the nicest men you would ever want to meet,” Dodds laments.

Other co-workers remember that Muir always left food in the firehall fridge for colleagues from other shifts.

Social media was lit up as Muir’s many friends over the years paid tribute to him

“R.I.P. Big Bud! A true great guy!” wrote Doug Gordon.

“He was a great man, great cook, and was the unofficial Etobicoke Fire Dept. photographer,” said Kevin Tweddle. “RIP Brian.”

“We on D shift loved following A shift Thursdays as that was fridge day and there were always great leftovers Brian cooked the night before,” recalls David Smith.

“Big bud was one of the best and there are no others like him,” mourns Tom George. “He was a great cook, great firefighter and a great man. RIP Bud.”

“He was one of the nicest guys on the job,” admits Glen Johnston. “He was not a good cook. He was a great cook. He could take an old shoe and make it taste like the best stake you ever had.”

Steve Yurg said ‘Big Bud’ taught him so much about fire and life as they worked together until he retired.

“He was one of the best cooks ever,” Yurg notes.

 

Residents and local merchants say they will miss a well-known candy maker and dozens of staff who are  moving after 50 years in the community for a larger brand new facility in Oakville.

Kerr’s Candy Ltd. says their factory at 956 Islington Ave., just north of The Queensway, is old and now to small as the candy maker expands.

The land that the current location is on is owned by the Toronto Catholic District School Board, and with nearby Holy Angels Catholic School deciding to expand, Kerr’s has been forced to move.

The company has been making Canadian treats for more than 125 years and has been in South Etobicoke since the early 1980s.

The confectioner moved to Toronto in the early 1900s and has made a name for its brands at the CNE and an array of retailers, including Walmart, Shoppers Drug, big box grocery stores and local shops.

Kerr’s was founded in 1895 by brothers Edward and Albert Kerr. After emigrating from Scotland, they opened a candy shop in St. Thomas, Ontario. Theirs is known for its high quality and rich heritage, so much so, that Kerr’s is an industry leader in Canadian confectionery.

“Our candy team, close to 80 of us, come from all across the globe,” Kerr’s said on its website. “We strive to have a happy, healthy and safe workplace, and our goal is to make Irresistible candy!”

They focus on creating candy for all Canadians. Their factory is peanut free, tree-nut free and gluten free. The company also makes many products that are suitable for kosher or halal diets, as well as sugar reduced diets.

While moving is never fun, the Kerr’s team says they’re excited for the upcoming changes and the potential that the company’s first new facility in nearly 40 years can provide.

“It’s a big change for us, we’ve been here in this facility since the early 1980s so it’s going to be an upgrade on everything. We built it pretty much from scratch, it’s going to be brand new,” explained marketing manager Whitney Martyniuk.

Many of its staff live in the area or have developed ties with local businesses and will be sorely missed.

You may be familiar with some of their products. They include lollypops, caramels, butterscotch, scotch mints, striped mints, toffee, fruit drops and the little red strawberry hearts.

Members of the local Guyanese community have banded together to help raise badly-needed cash and emergency goods and food to help thousands in their homeland that has been hit hard by recent floods.

Emergency relief drive-throughs are being held on June 19 in Brampton, at 75 Parkwood Square, and June 20 in North York, at 40 Carl Hall Road.

The drive-through drop-offs will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at both sites.

Badly- needed Items includes non-perishable food, money to purchase items in demand, gloves, cleaning items, garbage bags, baby and children items, mask, sanitizers, disinfectant wipes, hygiene kits, medicine and other cleaning and antiseptic materials.

The widespread flooding washed away roads, homes and farmland throughout the small South American country. More than 6,900 households across the country have been severely affected by the flooding in the past several weeks, according to government estimates.

The Government of Guyana has declared a disaster in response to the flooding that has affected all regions since mid-May.

Weeks of flooding continues in neighbouring Suriname, where over 10,000 people have been affected.

President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali declared Guyana a disaster on June 10.

Irfaan said a Tropical Wave embedded with the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITGZ) resulted in heavy rainfall during May, which was likely to continue until late June and possibly mid-July.

As many as 25,000 households have now been affected by the flooding in Guyana, according to the country’s Civil Defence Commission (CDC).

CDC has received reports of flooding in more than 300 communities across all regions of Guyana. It is  estimated that between 7,000 and 8,000 homes have been damaged. It is unknown how many people were killed by the flooding.

Irfaan said the flooding is one of the worst disasters the country has ever faced and projected that it will take some time for the country recover once the situation has abated. He appealed for aid from countries abroad.

Federal statistics show that about 70,000 Guyanese live in Toronto and about 200,000 make Canada their home.

For more information email governorp.p@gmail.com or phone 647-994-7443 or 416-993-9266.

 

Toronto Police have intensified a manhunt for a suspect who is accused of stabbing a man during an argument in the Long Branch area.

Officers warn that the suspect is considered violent, armed and dangerous and residents are asked to call 911 if they see him.

Officers were called to the Long Branch Avenue and Lake Shore Blvd. W. area on June 14 around 4:47 p.m. to deal with a person with a knife.

“It is alleged a man became involved in an argument with a number of people and made threats towards them,” according to a release from 22 Division. “He stabbed one of them several times causing extensive injuries.”

The suspect then fled the area.

Police have identified the suspect as Justin Bellinger, 32, of Toronto. He faces a charge of attempt murder.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-2200, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), online at www.222tips.com, online on our Facebook Leave a Tip page, or text TOR and your message to CRIMES (274637). Download the free Crime Stoppers Mobile App on iTunes or Google Play.

Ira and May Smith have a love for ice and sell their frosty cubes to stores across the city so people can keep their drinks cool this summer.

The couple own Smith Ice, which has been supplying GTA residents with tonnes of cube ice, block ice, shaved ice or large-bagged ice for 20 years.

They have a large ice factory in Scarborough, from which they refill the shelves of hundreds of supermarkets, variety stores, pubs and taverns in Etobicoke and elsewhere.

It is believed that they are the first black family to own an ice factory in Toronto.

Ira grew up in Jamaica, where he helped his grandfather sell ice in the streets to people.

“I used to help him fetch the big blocks of ice from the truck,” he recalls.

“My grandfather instilled the love of ice to me as a kid,” Smith says proudly. “After I came to Canada at the age of 13, I was making ice from trays that I bought at Canadian Tire.”

He graduated from trays and moved to a larger ice maker. Ice making then went from being a hobby in the basement to now owning an ice factory at 120 Barbados Blvd., in Scarborough.

“We were founded in the basement of our old house,” Ira explains. “Smith Ice grew out of the basement into the backyard and eventually into a warehouse manufacturing facility.”

He freezes tonnes of ice at the factory, which is sold mostly in cubes in varying size bags to a network of gas station ice boxes, supermarkets, variety stores and bars.

On this day, the couple are refilling a store on Horner Ave. with their ice.

“We carry a wide spectrum of ice products to meet your chilling need,” he says. “We have been in business for 20-plus years and provide a host of bagged ice products to many companies throughout Toronto and GTA.”

Smith Ice has grown from humble beginnings in a small garage to a full service Ice facility with over 20 tonnes and growing capacity a day.

“Every year we strive to increase this number and offer our clients and customers better quality ice and faster service,” May says.

They provide innovative solutions for their businesses, such as larger ice storage freezers when demand is high and rush service for when they need the product quickly.

“Smith Ice stands by our customers and views each one of our vendors as not only family, but an extension of our own brand,” she says.

Ira adds ‘our team is comprised of people who take pride in what they do and aspire to do the best job possible to make certain that orders get loaded and delivered in a timely, efficient manner with a smile on our face.’

“As we continue to grow in the future, we will not lose sight of where we came from and what got us there: equal portions of hard-work, positivity, a commitment to excellence and a can-do attitude. “

Smith Ice can be reached at 416-750-0655 or email info@smithice.com

 

 

A community memorial service is being planned to pay tribute to the many neighbours, friends and loved ones who passed away from COVID-19.

Community leaders from various groups are compiling a list of names of those in the community who fell to the deadly virus. More than 100 area residents are estimated to have perished from the deadly disease in the South Etobicoke area.

Many died in long care homes and in most cases less than 10 loved ones were permitted to attend their funeral or services to prevent the spread of the virus.

Rev. Jacqueline Daley, of St. Margaret Church, on Sixth Street, said meetings are being held bi-weekly to plan a memorial service by members of her church, Dorothy Ley Hospice, LAMP and Lakeshore Arts.

“Many people were lost on the streets who we still don’t know about,” Daley says. “We have to remember them through prayer.”

The service will be held at St. Margaret Church, on §ixth Street church. The date will be released soon.

“Nobody is sure home many people passed away in the community during COVID-19,” Daley says. “We want to identify them and tell their stories.”

The names of some of those who passed will be displayed at the service.

“Many of us have not had enough time to grieve,” Daley says. “It is about time that we all prayed for them.”

Health officials say the spread of the virus has been decreasing due to more vaccines being issues. More than 3,000 Toronto residents have been killed by COVID-19, according to city officials. More than 9,000 have died in Ontario. The virus has killed more than 25,000 alone in Canada,

Rev. Daley can be reached by phone at 416-259-2659 or by email at stmargaretnewtoronto@toronto.anglican.ca

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The iconic St. Margaret New Toronto Church on Sixth Street is one of the oldest places to worship in our community and has launched a fundraiser to celebrate its 115 years of service.

Church officials say the beautiful South Etobicoke house of prayer served the community faithfully during the Spanish Flu of 1918, Great Depression, two World Wars, Hurricane Hazel and now during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reverend Jacqueline Daley said the funds raised will help the church serve the New Toronto community for another 115 years and beyond.

“The church started serving in 1906 as a humble mission of Christ Church Mimico,” Daley recalls. “The building received a present for its 100th birthday in a massive renovation that enabled her to serve the community better.”

She said St. Margaret is an accessible community hub for social justice, hospitality, care and compassion.

“We do not know what the future holds, but we know we will be there serving our community as we are called to do,” Daley says. “During the pandemic, we served three-course take-out Christmas and Easter dinners.”

The church provides food and care five times a week, in addition to serving 300 meals weekly, washes 40 loads of laundry and providing showers for church-goers. This is possible through their partnership with LAMP Community Health Center and Lakeshore Out of the Cold.

It has baptized generations into the faith, buried loved ones, comforted the grieving and helped the vulnerable in need, she says.

“We have helped rebuild many lives after countless tragedies and losses,” Daley notes. “After 115 years, St. Margaret continues to be a vibrant Christian community providing spiritual care, faith formation and hospitality to all.”

Rebecca Wang, at 87, has been the organist at the church for more than 50 years.

“I love this church,” Wang says. “This is our home and it is a big family.”

Linda Elkerton said she was confirmed at St. Margaret’s, got married there and some of her children and grandchildren were baptized at the historic church.

“My mother has been attending the church since 1938,” Elkerton says proudly. “This is my community and this is our church.”

The church has members from Sri Lanka, Cuba, Iran, Nigeria, Trinidad and Tobago, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Jamaica, Bahamas, and Uganda.

“Our doors to those in need are never closed,” she said. “St. Margaret has not only served others, but also welcomed four babies and one newcomer through baptism.”

A Thanksgiving Service was held on June 13 to celebrate the 115 anniversary of the church.

Also you can join them weekly on Zoom from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. for an all-ages church service. Connect by phone at 647-558-0588.